Sunday, May 31, 2015

Elon Musk's $5 Billion in Govt Subsidies Help Make Ends Meet


He is running space x ---- America's shuttle replacement--- was planned on being manned by now---- maybe in a few or so more years, but we keep paying Russia .! Priority not there, but this is going to save our space capabilities! Capabilities not even close to shuttle, but they continue to ignore x37 C boeing proposal. Very disappointed in Charlie bolden, nasa adm. A truly tragic end to America's great space capabilities!!






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Friday, May 29, 2015

Fwd: [nasa-jsc-retirees-list] FW:NASA News and JSC Today - Friday, May 29, 2015



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Begin forwarded message:

From: "Moon, Larry J. (JSC-EA411)" <larry.j.moon@nasa.gov>
Date: May 29, 2015 at 6:52:31 AM CDT
To: "Moon, Larry J. (JSC-EA411)" <larry.j.moon@nasa.gov>
Subject: [nasa-jsc-retirees-list] FW:NASA News and  JSC Today - Friday, May 29, 2015
Reply-To: larry.j.moon@nasa.gov

JSC Today - Friday, May 29, 2015

Happy Friday everyone.  Have a great and safe weekend.

 

JOURNEY TO MARS

• RS-25 Engine Test Fired For The Second Time.

• University Of Florida Researcher Has Role In InSight Mission.

ISS

• Chinese Astronauts Wants To Visit ISS.

• Kauderer, Kelly Dealing With "Ultimate Long-Distance Relationship."

• Message From Virts Airs At Jimmy Buffett Concert.

• New MaterialsLab Database Will Help Share ISS Research.

• Space Law Expert Warns That US Wants To Secure Space Mining Property Rights.

• Wiseman Speaks About His Time In Space At His High School.

• Antares Rocket Still On Track To Launch Again In March 2016.

• German Astronaut Too "Amazing Pictures" When At The ISS.

OTHER NASA NEWS

• Last Shuttle External Tank Will Be Part Of California's Endeavour Shuttle Exhibit.

• Accomack County Roads Could Be Permanently Flooded In Coming Decades.

• Stennis Helps Students Create Award Winning Robot That Will Save Picayune Thousands.

• Student Teams Participate In Education Showcase.

• CSULB Team Makes Last Minute Repairs To Contest Entry.

• NASA's Effort Applauded For Helping To Change "Gender-Science Stereotypes."

• Utah's Astronauts Exemplify State's Role In Spaceflight.

• Gilmour Brothers Plan To Replicate NASA's Methods When Developing Training Facility.

• Jemison Speaks At Southland College Prep Charter High School Graduation.

• NASA Not Involved In Center For American Progress Symposium On Spaceflight.

RS-25 Engine Test Fired For The Second Time.

NASA Space Flight (5/28, Bergin, 305) reports that the Stennis Space Center conducted the "second test firing of RS-25 engine 0525" Thursday at its A-1 Test Stand. It was "deemed to be successful," although engineers still have to fully review the data in order to make a final assessment. In another development, the article notes that the assembly of a new RS-25 flight engine was also completed recently. Steve Wofford, manager of the SLS Liquid Engines Office, said, "Assembly of this new engine is part of a very busy year for the RS-25 team. ... We're testing one engine, developing a new controller and planning to manufacture new engines in the future."

        The Daily Mail (UK) (5/28, Prigg, 5.37M) notes that in a time-laspe video, NASA shows how the RS-25, a "powerhouse of a rocket engine," is constructed. According to the article, once fully constructed, the SLS will be "the most powerful rocket ever built" with "an unprecedented lift capability."

        Gizmodo (5/28, Chan, 1.08M) also covers the story.

University Of Florida Researcher Has Role In InSight Mission.

The Palm Beach (FL) Post (5/28, 495K) reports on Mark Panning of the University of Florida and his role in NASA's InSight Mars lander. During planning, he will show "that analyzing data from a single seismic station can provide a good one-dimensional model of Mars."

Chinese Astronauts Wants To Visit ISS.

CNN (5/28, Mckenzie, 3.17M), in an article headlined "Chinese astronaut calls for cooperation, access to International Space Station," reports that, "in an exclusive interview with Chinese astronauts" who made up the Shenzhou-10 mission, China wants to increase its collaborations in space, "particularly" with the US. Commander Nie Haisheng said that he would like to go to the ISS, something the US government has barred because of fears that China will steal technology, according to space analyst Miles O'Brien. Even though the country still lags behind the US, China is "steadily checking off the boxes in manned space flight."

        CNN's Out Front (5/28, 7:49 p.m. ET, 409K) broadcast a version of the report, with more of a focus on whether China's manned spaceflight program's ties to the military means that it is a threat to the US and its allies.

        Chiao: US Has Opportunity To Work With China And Lead In Space. In a special report for CNN (5/28, 3.17M), astronaut Leroy Chiao writes about his trip to the Astronaut Center of China back in 2006. Detailing his interaction with Chinese astronauts, as well as how they were surprised by the quality of the images taken from the ISS, Chiao comments that China has "made great strides in human spaceflight," which makes them worthy of collaboration. According to Chiao, there is an "opportunity" today to bring China into the ISS program, thus establishing the US as the leader in spaceflight before the ISS ends operating. With other countries already meeting with China about participating in its space station program, Chiao warns that the US runs the risk of losing its leadership position to China over time.

        Berger: Tiangong Will Be "Premiere" Space Station After ISS' Retirement. In his stargazing column for Florida Today (5/28, 168K), Bernie Badger writes about a chance to see China's Tiangong 1 space lab in the sky. Berger claims that when the Tiangong becomes "a large space station around 2020," it will be the next "premier space dock" after the ISS' retirement.

Kauderer, Kelly Dealing With "Ultimate Long-Distance Relationship."

The Houston Chronicle (5/29, O'Connor, 2.29M) reports on the "ultimate long-distance relationship" between ISS astronaut Scott Kelly and his girlfriend Amiko Kauderer, who works in public affairs at NASA. The article, which focuses on how Kauderer is dealing with the separation, notes that this is not the first time that the two have been separated by a space mission, but this time it is "better" in part because they are able to video chat once per week. Kauderer, according to the article, is "adamant" that her situation is not as hard as some, like those with significant others deployed in war zones.

Message From Virts Airs At Jimmy Buffett Concert.

The Houston Chronicle (5/29, Christian, 2.29M) reports that singer Jimmy Buffett was scheduled to air a message from ISS astronaut Terry Virts live during his Houston concert on Thursday, with plans to "respond to Virts live." The concert will be taped and shown at the ISS

New MaterialsLab Database Will Help Share ISS Research.

The WAAY-TV Huntsville, AL (5/28, Barrett, 3K) "Space Alabama" website reports on NASA's MaterialsLab database, a new effort to showcase "the results of materials science experiments both past and present on the International Space Station." John Vickers, manager of NASA's National Center for Advanced Manufacturing at the Marshall Space Flight Center, said, "The MaterialsLab is a new project that's really a new approach to the way we do microgravity materials science on the space station. ... The more scientists that we have working on the data, the more discoveries that can be made, and it accelerates the process" of applying the research. Vickers added, "As an engineer, one of the things that gets me really excited is how we can work with the scientific community to apply the discoveries from microgavity materials science, which really is one of the first building blocks in the technological innovation cycle. ... It's about how we can apply those discoveries to real world engineering problems, either at NASA or in the industry."

        Blog Coverage. Doug Messier at Parabolic Arc (5/28) continues coverage of the recent Government Accountability Office (GAO) report about the ISS program titled "Measurable Performance Targets and Documentation Needed to Better Assess Management of National Laboratory." The report stated that in fiscal 2016, NASA and the Center for the Advancement of Science in Space (CASIS) should develop the metrics necessary to evaluate the ISS' research, which both agencies agreed with. Messier notes that NASA and CASIS disagreed on the GAO's finding that the ISS National Laboratory Advisory Committee (INLAC) needs to be fully staffed. According to the GAO, when presented with its recommendations, the groups warned that there could be "a conflict of interest" if members were appointed under INLAC's current charter.

Space Law Expert Warns That US Wants To Secure Space Mining Property Rights.

Sputnik News (5/28) reports that Stephan Hobe of the Institute of Air and Space Law at Cologne University believes that the US wants "to secure property rights in space and, particularly in the Moon," despite the current laws against that. He added that the current "gray areas" in the International Space Treaty need to be rectified now. Instead of establishing commercial mining rights on the moon and other objects, Hobe believes it would be better to establish "a state a nature reserve" on these bodies.

        Blog Coverage. Kiona Smith-Strickland at Gizmodo (5/28, 1.08M) profiles space mining companies Moon Express and Planetary Resources, whose goals are "very real." Each company is "optimistic" about their prospects, although they differ on whether the moon or asteroids will be easier targets for operations. Smith-Strickland notes that both companies are using the ISS to test early versions of their systems. Moon Express founder Naveen Jain said its unmanned shuttle, which could carry resources back to Earth one day, is set to head to the ISS in 2016. Planetary Resources, meanwhile, has already sent "an early version of its Arkyd prospecting satellite" to the ISS. As well as generating profits, both also view their efforts "as a way to build infrastructure for space exploration in the long run."

Wiseman Speaks About His Time In Space At His High School.

The WBAL-TV Baltimore (5/28, 146K) website reports that astronaut Reid Wiseman spoke at Dulaney Valley High School, the high school he graduated from, on Thursday. Wiseman, who was "a Twitter celebrity" during his time at the ISS, discussed his six-month mission in space, as well as "his love for science."

        The WJZ-TV Baltimore (5/28, Schuh, 69K) website describes Wiseman as the school's "most famous graduate." According to the article, his message to the students was "getting through" to them.

        The WMAR-TV Baltimore (5/28, 35K) website also covers the story.

Antares Rocket Still On Track To Launch Again In March 2016.

Via Satellite (5/28, Henry, 1K) reports that in its "first post-merger quarterly earnings call," Orbital ATK CEO David Thompson spoke on the work to return the Antares rocket to service so that it can conduct cargo resupply missions to the ISS. Orbital ATK will replace the rocket's AJ-26 engines with Russian-built RD-181 engines. According to Thompson, testing on the new engines has already begun and has gone "as expected," with plans to still have the rocket launching in March 2016, "with about one month of schedule margin available to us at this time."

German Astronaut Too "Amazing Pictures" When At The ISS.

The KSOO-AM Sioux Falls, SD (5/28, Kuhns) website profiled German astronaut Alexander Gerst and his time at the ISS, which was titled the Blue Dot mission. While at the ISS, Gerst took "amazing pictures of the earth."

 

Last Shuttle External Tank Will Be Part Of California's Endeavour Shuttle Exhibit.

The Los Angeles Times (5/29, Lin, Rañoa, 4.03M) "L.A. Now" website reports that the California Science Center scored a "coup" when officials announced on Thursday that NASA will give its "last remaining external fuel tank" to the museum's Endeavour shuttle exhibit. "In November at the earliest," the tank will be shipped by barge from the Michoud Assembly Facility to the center. Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti said this was a "giant win" for the city.

        According to collectSPACE (5/28, Pearlman), reports that the idea that there would be a "complete space shuttle" was an idea "no one thought possible again." Jeffrey Rudolph, president and CEO of the California Science Center, in an interview with the publication, said that the center will be "celebrating," as the tank's "reunion with the orbiter, will be historic."

        The City News Service (CA) (5/28, Park), Southern California Public Radio (5/28, Frank, 85K), West Hollywood (CA) Patch (5/28, Karnes), and Tech Times (5/28, Algar, 153K) also cover the story.

Accomack County Roads Could Be Permanently Flooded In Coming Decades.

The Delmarva (MD) Daily Times (5/29, Vaughn, 2K) reports that a study by the Accomack-Northampton Planning District Commission and funded by NOAA and the Virginia Coastal Zone Management Program found that sea level rise will cause 33 miles of roads in Virginia's Eastern Shore to be "permanently flooded sometime between 2025 and 2050." The article notes that over 80 percent of those roads are in Accomack County, which hosts the Wallops Flight Facility. This study was conducted in order "to help localities and governmental agencies formulate long-range plans for how to deal with the predicted changes."

Stennis Helps Students Create Award Winning Robot That Will Save Picayune Thousands.

The WBRC-TV Birmingham, AL (5/28, Thies, 59K) website reports that Nicholson Elementary students, along with officials from the Stennis Space Center and the Pearl River County robotics team, won Samsung's "Solve for Tomorrow" contest, by developing "a mobile robot small enough to travel throughout the drainage system and locate the clogs." The article notes that the robot will now save Picayune "thousands of dollars and man-hours." According to the article, the students' teacher, Maureen Pollitz, turned to Stennis for a way to help the children learn without having to spend precious funding. Pollitz said that NASA programs are "extremely important" because of the region's "economic difficulties." NASA education specialist Steve Culivan said, "It was a privilege to present a NASA education program demonstrating how STEM and the engineering design process can be applied to solve a real-world problem and help the local community."

Student Teams Participate In Education Showcase.

The Press of Atlantic City (NJ) (5/29, Brunetti, 214K) reports that on Thursday, a team of students from Mullica Township Middle School was one of seven to participate in "an Internet showcase of students' solutions to engineering problems" to officials from NASA and the Department of Education (ED). Ellen Lettvin, Robert Noyce Fellow in Informal STEM Learning in the ED's Office of Innovation and Improvement, told one team, "Failure is not bad, it just helps you figure out which place to go. ... I like you made that very clear." Astronaut Cady Colemon also said, "These were hard problems. ... It takes a lot of patience."

        Coleman To Take Part In White House Event Honoring Small Businesses. The Lexington (KY) Herald-Leader (5/28, 268K) reports that the US Small Business Administration is honoring 23 small businesses with its 2015 Tibbetts Award on June 15. The award goes to those whose "products or service...benefit the nation." At the White House ceremony will be astronaut Cady Coleman.

CSULB Team Makes Last Minute Repairs To Contest Entry.

The Long Beach (CA) Post (5/29, Morris, 322) reports that a student team from California State University, Long Beach's (CSULB) Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering had to make last-minute repairs to its entry for the RASC-AL Exploration Robo-Ops Competition hosted by the Johnson Space Center on June 2. The article notes that this is the first time the school has taken part in the event, which will feature seven other teams.

NASA's Effort Applauded For Helping To Change "Gender-Science Stereotypes."

In an article for The Conversation (UK) (5/28), David Miller, a doctoral student in Psychology at Northwestern University, wrote that his team has discovered that "less than 1% of American and Canadian elementary school children" think of a scientist as female when asked to draw one. Going into detail into his researcher, Miller notes that "gender-science stereotypes" are "firm" around the world, although there is "optimism" that this fact can change. While calling on more to be done, Miller specifically applauded efforts like NASA's work with Google and Disney Junior "to create TV characters of both young boys and girls interested in coding and space science" to try to change this situation.

Utah's Astronauts Exemplify State's Role In Spaceflight.

The KSL-TV Salt Lake City (5/28, Crofts, 1.07M) website gave brief biographies of every astronaut from Utah to show how the state has "a significant role in space exploration."

Gilmour Brothers Plan To Replicate NASA's Methods When Developing Training Facility.

The Australian Broadcasting Corporation (5/28, Larkins, 39K) reports that brothers Adam and James Gilmour, heads of Gilmour Space Technologies and Gilmour Space Corporation, plan to transform "a former strawberry farm on the Pacific Motorway at Pimpama," into "a multi-million dollar space museum, astronaut training and rocket manufacture facility." When developing their "world-class astronaut training facilities," Adam said that the group aims "to replicate about 90 per cent of NASA astronaut training." According to the article, the hope is change views about spaceflight in Australia.

Jemison Speaks At Southland College Prep Charter High School Graduation.

The Daily Southtown (IL) (5/28) reports that at the Southland College Prep Charter High School, astronaut Mae Jemison spoke to the graduating students about their potential for achievement.

NASA Not Involved In Center For American Progress Symposium On Spaceflight.

Rand Simberg at Transterrestrial Musings (5/28, 1K) writes that it is interesting that NASA is not involved in a Center For American Progress "symposium on the past and future of human spaceflight."

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

   Headlines

  1. NASA TV to Air Astronaut Hall of Fame Induction

NASA TV will provide live coverage of the 2015 U.S. Astronaut Hall of Fame induction ceremony at 1 p.m. CDT on Saturday, May 30. The ceremony will take place at NASA's Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex Space Shuttle Atlantis attraction in Florida.

Joining the hall of fame this year are NASA's associate administrator for the Science Mission Directorate John Grunsfeld, and former astronauts Steve Lindsey, Kent Rominger and M. Rhea Seddon. Their induction brings the total number of space explorers enshrined to 91.

NASA Administrator Charles Bolden, a 2006 hall of famer, and Kennedy Director Bob Cabana, inducted into the hall of fame in 2008, will deliver remarks at the event.

For NASA TV schedules and links to streaming video, click here.

JSC External Relations, Office of Communications and Public Affairs x35111 http://www.nasa.gov/nasatv

[top]

  1. JSC's Underwater Engineering Design Challenge

Micro-g Neutral Buoyancy Experiment Design Teams (Micro-g NExT) teams arrive next week to test their spacewalk tools in the Neutral Buoyancy Laboratory for the first time! The Micro-g NExT program challenges undergraduate students to design, build and test a tool or device that addresses an authentic, current space-exploration problem.

You can learn about the design challenges, and the teams that have created tools to meet those challenges, by tuning in to the JSC USTREAM on Wednesday, June 3, for a live webcast with the teams from 9:30 to 10:30 a.m. CDT. You are invited to submit questions ahead of time and join the conversation on Twitter using #MicrogNExT.

Schools participating: Purdue University, Trinity University, Embry-Riddle/Duke University, Houston Community College, Boise State University, Oklahoma State University, University of Texas-Austin and University of Texas-El Paso

Watch and learn as these students make an impact on the future of space exploration!

Ashlé Harris 281-792-7457 https://microgravityuniversity.jsc.nasa.gov/theProgram/micro-g-next/inde...

[top]

  1. EZTV IP System Upgrades

Beginning Wednesday, June 3.

The ACES EZTV plugin push schedule for overnight Tuesday, June 2, is in support of an EZTV server upgrade scheduled for Wednesday morning, June 3, at 7:30 a.m. During this time, the EZTV server will be offline for one hour while the new server is configured. Desktop support for JSC, White Sands Test Facility (WSTF), Ellington Field and Sonny Carter Training Center will be offline during this time. This applies to all PC and MAC users in the JSC network domain. The outage will extend to the users of IPTV Set Top Box (STB) systems, including WSTF. The STB system will take up to eight hours to return to operations while the second server is installed.

Expect a return to complete service on Thursday, June 4.

If you have any concerns or questions, please call the Multimedia Services, Engineering Department at 281-483-4022.

Richard Canter x34022

[top]

  1. NASA Tech Briefs Show Multiple JSC Technologies

NASA Tech Briefs highlights seven JSC technologies in the May publication. Tech Briefs share information on advanced research and technology programs developed through NASA.

May articles include: Tech, Medical Design, and Sensor Technology Briefs: MSC# 25482-1 (inventors - Nicholas Mullins, Timothy Becker and Joseph Moran); MSC# 24821(inventors - Arturas Ziemys, Jaskaran Gill and Alessandro Grattoni); MSC#24723-1 (inventors - Matthias Borck, Mona Lam, Lokson Woo, Jason Milam, Charles Wheeler, Robert Penry, Jeanne Mehsling, Lynn Chang, Aurin Tesoro, Aaron Benzel, Andrea Chalk, Yagnesh Patel, Noreen McLeroy, Richard Herder and Dan Swint); MSC# 24629-1 (inventors - Xianbin Yang, Nancy Ward, Durland Ross and Nancy Ward); MSC# 25671-1 (inventors - Shian-uei Hwu, Buveneka Kanishka DeSilva, James R Keiser and Catherine C. Sham); MSC# 24539-1 (inventors - Aman Mann, Alessandro Grattoni, Randy Goodall, Lee Hudson and Sharath Hosali); and MSC# 25396-1 (inventors - Satish Reddy and Robert Wikes).

Review the articles here.

Holly Kurth x32951

[top]

   Organizations/Social

  1. Keeping it Real

Back by popular demand and through a collaborative effort between the African-American Employee Resource Group (ERG) and the Out & Allied ERG is the fourth "Keeping it Real" event on June 2 from 4 to 6 p.m. at Space Center Houston. This event is designed to encourage interactive discussions that allow participants to pose random questions to senior leaders in an open forum. There will be two microphones passed around to allow the audience to ask their questions; however, we ask that you send in your questions prior to the event. There will also be index cards on each table to allow members of the audience to write their questions down and have them read to the speakers.

Event Date: Tuesday, June 2, 2015   Event Start Time:4:00 PM   Event End Time:6:00 PM
Event Location: Space Center Houston

Add to Calendar

Bryan Snook x40192

[top]

  1. What's Going on With Engineers Without Borders-JSC

Ever wonder what Engineers Without Borders (EWB) does? Stop by Building 7, Room 141, on Wednesday, June 3, from noon to 1 p.m. to learn about the EWB-JSC chapter, previous projects and how you can get involved with our new Thailand project and upcoming Kenya project. No RSVP is required. And remember, you don't have to be an engineer to get involved.

Event Date: Wednesday, June 3, 2015   Event Start Time:12:00 PM   Event End Time:1:00 PM
Event Location: Building 7

Add to Calendar

Michael Ewert x39134

[top]

  1. ¡A Bailar! - Free Salsa and Bachata Lesson

The Hispanic Employee Resource Group and Starport's Salsa/Latin dance instructors are bringing you a night of FREE Salsa and Bachata lessons! The class will cover beginner and intermediate-level steps, including some fun turn combinations, so we welcome all levels of experience. Before the class we will be having dinner at Don Pico's (for those of us who would like to stick around after work). See you there!

Friday, May 29

Dinner:

Don Pico's - 2110 Bay Area Blvd, Houston, 77058

5:30 to 7 p.m.

Salsa and Bachata lesson:

Gilruth Center Studio 1

7:30 to 9 p.m.

Cost: FREE

Event Date: Friday, May 29, 2015   Event Start Time:7:30 PM   Event End Time:9:00 PM
Event Location: JSC Gilruth, Studio 1

Add to Calendar

Lilibeth Mata x36242

[top]

   Community

  1. Have a Say in Proposed Regulations

Do you wish you could have your voice heard in federal policy making? Well, you can! The Federal Register is how the government publishes notices, proposed rules, final rules and presidential documents for public viewing and comments. The "Proposed Rules" section contains proposed regulations and gives interested persons an opportunity to submit comments to improve the final regulation. Proposed regulations that affect NASA are included in the register. For example, five proposed regulations affecting NASA have been published this year, including the most recent proposed regulation "Denied Access to NASA Centers," which provides clarity and information beneficial to NASA contractors that are denied access to a NASA facility when a NASA facility is closed to all personnel. These may be found by searching under "NASA" here.

Brad Niese x33005

[top]

 

 

JSC Today is compiled periodically as a service to JSC employees on an as-submitted basis. Any JSC organization or employee may submit articles.

Disclaimer: Accuracy and content of these notes are the responsibility of the submitters.

 

Posted by at No comments:

Thursday, May 28, 2015

Keep the shuttle flying: 6 LOST capabilities with shuttle retirement

http://keeptheshuttleflyingc.blogspot.com/2014/10/6-lost-capabilities-with-shuttle.html


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Fwd: Commercial Crew Milestones Met; Partners on Track for Missions in 2017



Sent from my iPad

Begin forwarded message:

From: "Gary Johnson" <gjohnson144@comcast.net>
Date: May 28, 2015 at 10:02:27 AM CDT
To: "Gary Johnson" <gjohnson144@comcast.net>
Subject: FW: Commercial Crew Milestones Met; Partners on Track for Missions in 2017

 

 

May 27, 2015

15-105

 

Commercial Crew Milestones Met; Partners on Track for Missions in 2017

NASA's Commercial Crew Program

Credits: NASA

NASA has taken another step toward returning America's ability to launch crew missions to the International Space Station from the United States in 2017.

The Commercial Crew Program ordered its first crew rotation mission from The Boeing Company. SpaceX, which successfully performed a pad abort test of its flight vehicle earlier this month, is expected to receive its first order later this year. Determination of which company will fly its mission to the station first will be made at a later time. The contract calls for the orders to take place prior to certification to support the lead time necessary for the first mission in late 2017, provided the contractors meet certain readiness conditions.

Missions flown to the station on Boeing's Crew Space Transportation (CST)-100 and SpaceX's Crew Dragon spacecraft will restore America's human spaceflight capabilities and increase the amount of scientific research that can be conducted aboard the orbiting laboratory.

"Final development and certification are top priority for NASA and our commercial providers, but having an eye on the future is equally important to the commercial crew and station programs," said Kathy Lueders, manager of NASA's Commercial Crew Program. "Our strategy will result in safe, reliable and cost-effective crew missions."

Boeing's crew transportation system, including the CST-100 spacecraft, has advanced through various commercial crew development and certification phases. The company recently completed the fourth milestone in the Commercial Crew Transportation Capability (CCtCap) phase of the program, the delta integrated critical design review. This milestone demonstrates the transportation system has reached design maturity appropriate to proceed with assembly, integration and test activities.

"We're on track to fly in 2017, and this critical milestone moves us another step closer in fully maturing the CST-100 design," said John Mulholland, Boeing's vice president of Commercial Programs. "Our integrated and measured approach to spacecraft design ensures quality performance, technical excellence and early risk mitigation."

Orders under the CCtCap contracts are made two to three years prior to the missions to provide time for each company to manufacture and assemble the launch vehicle and spacecraft. In addition, each company must successfully complete the certification process before NASA will give the final approval for flight. If NASA does not receive the full requested funding for CCtCap in fiscal year 2016 and beyond, NASA will have to delay future milestones for both partners proportionally and extend sole reliance on Russia for crew access to the station.

A standard mission to the station will carry four NASA or NASA-sponsored crew members and about 220 pounds of pressurized cargo. The spacecraft will remain at the station for up to 210 days and serve as an emergency lifeboat during that time. Each contract includes a minimum of two and a maximum potential of six missions.

"Commercial Crew launches are critical to the International Space Station Program because it ensures multiple ways of getting crews to orbit," said Julie Robinson, International Space Station chief scientist. "It also will give us crew return capability so we can increase the crew to seven, letting us complete a backlog of hands-on critical research that has been building up due to heavy demand for the National Laboratory."

NASA's Commercial Crew Program manages the CCtCap contracts and is working with each company to ensure commercial transportation system designs and post-certification missions will meet the agency's safety requirements. Activities that follow the award of missions include a series of mission-related reviews and approvals leading to launch. The program also will be involved in all operational phases of missions to ensure crew safety.

For more information about NASA's Commercial Crew Program, visit:

http://www.nasa.gov/commercialcrew

For the latest on Commercial Crew progress, bookmark the program's blog at:

http://blogs.nasa.gov/commercialcrew

For more information about the International Space Station, visit:

http://www.nasa.gov/station

-end-

Stephanie Schierholz
Headquarters, Washington
202-358-1100
stephanie.schierholz@nasa.gov

Stephanie Martin
Kennedy Space Center, Fla.
321-867-2468
stephanie.a.martin@nasa.gov

Last Updated: May 28, 2015

Editor: Karen Northon

 

 

 

Posted by at No comments:

Fwd: X-37B spaceplane’s orbit discovered



Sent from my iPad

Begin forwarded message:

From: "Gary Johnson" <gjohnson144@comcast.net>
Date: May 28, 2015 at 9:55:42 AM CDT
To: "Gary Johnson" <gjohnson144@comcast.net>
Subject: FW: X-37B spaceplane's orbit discovered

 

 

X-37B spaceplane's orbit discovered

May 27, 2015 by Justin Ray

Credit: Boeing

Credit: Boeing

CAPE CANAVERAL — Hobbyists who keep track of the skies with remarkable precision have found the U.S. Air Force's mini space shuttle in its no-longer-secret orbit around the Earth.

The X-37B craft, making the program's fourth mission into space, was launched May 20 from Cape Canaveral atop a United Launch Alliance Atlas 5 rocket.

The ascent entered a news blackout about five minutes after liftoff, as the Centaur upper stage began its burn to put the spaceplane into low-Earth orbit.

It wasn't until later that officials confirmed the launch had gone smoothly for the Orbital Test Vehicle mission No. 4. It is believed the Centaur deployed X-37B about 19 minutes into flight.

Observers this week spotted the craft flying overhead in a 194 by 202 mile orbit (312 X 325 km), tilted 38 degrees relative to the equator.

That perch is lower than previous X-37B missions and the inclination is lower, too.

"OTV 4 entered the lowest initial altitude of the program," said Ted Molczan, a respected satellite observing hobbyist.

"The ground track nearly repeats every 2 days. Frequently repeating ground tracks have been a common feature of the program. This could be an indication of a surveillance mission, or it may offer some operational advantage I have yet to figure out."

Although the Air Force revealed two experiments to be conducted on this fourth mission — an electric propulsion thruster test and materials exposure in the space environment — much was classified about the flight, including the orbit, mission duration and even which of the two X-37B spaceplanes is making the trip.

"The X-37B testbed platform is unique because we can tailor to specific user needs and return experiments back to post-flight inspection," said Ken Torok, Boeing's director of experimental systems.

"Reliability, reusability and responsiveness of the X-37B will fundamentally change how we perform future space missions."

OTV 1 (first flight of Vehicle No. 1)
Launch: April 22, 2010
Landing: Dec. 3 2010
Duration: 224 days

OTV 2 (first flight of Vehicle No. 2)
Launch: March 5, 2011
Landing: June 16, 2012
Duration: 469 days

OTV 3 (second flight of Vehicle No. 1)
Launch: Dec. 11, 2012
Landing: Oct. 17, 2014
Duration: 675 days

"These missions have proven the reliability and flexibility of the system to support a variety of experiments," Torok said.

See our earlier launch coverage.

 

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